Arsene Wenger believes that Cardiff City can count themselves unlucky not to have secured at least a point in this afternoon's 2-0 defeat to Arsenal.
The Gunners returned to the summit of the Premier League table but left it late to do so, with Nicklas Bendtner opening the scoring on 88 minutes before Theo Walcott sealed the victory shortly after.
Consequently, the Frenchman hailed the resilience of his team required to claim the win, but sympathised with the Bluebirds who he felt deserved something from the clash.
He told reporters: "We needed to be patient against a very good Cardiff side. I think we were mature, intelligent and resilient. Maybe it is a consequence of the number of games we have played.
"They did work absolutely hard. They deserve credit and were a bit unfortunate to lose in the end."
Wenger turns his attentions toward a third-round FA Cup clash with North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday.
Shane Callaghan
